Lady Eagles progressing under wings of new coach Beth Parmer

Oak Mountain’s Hannah Edwards (32) could prove to be an X-factor this season, as long as the 6-foot-6 forward remains healthy.

The Oak Mountain High School girls basketball players already knew her as “Coach P” before she became their head coach.

After serving as an assistant last season at Oak Mountain, Beth Parmer was named head coach of the program. Allen McGowan served as the Lady Eagles coach for four years and is now an assistant with the Birmingham-Southern College women’s program.

Parmer played a support role last year. Now, she’s putting her imprint on the team.

“I’m introducing a new style to them,” she said. “It takes time, it takes adjustments, and so we’re not where we need to be. But everybody’s on board with it, everybody’s looking forward to it.”

The Lady Eagles put together a solid season in 2017-18, but playing in Class 7A, Area 6 with Huffman and Spain Park — two of the top teams in the state — left them on the outside looking in with regard to the playoffs. They finished the year with a 16-11 record.

Parmer said the goal for this year’s group is to advance to the final of the area tournament, which would grant the Lady Eagles a berth in the regional tournament.

“That is a very attainable goal,” she said. “That would be a good thing for the girls and the school, and it’ll be a great start and be something these four seniors can say, ‘Hey, we made it there. We did this.’ That’s what I want for them.”

Those four seniors are Kailey Rory, Clara Fuller, Emily Cruce and Adair Klapow. Rory is the team’s top returning scorer and an adept ball-handler, but Parmer hopes to get increased contributions from others to take pressure off Rory.

“We’ve got to have everybody stepping up,” she said.

Fuller has had great success on the softball field but has been encouraged to shoot more this season. Cruce is an AUM soccer commit and brings toughness, and Klapow is a strong leader.

Most teams will key on stopping Rory, but a potential X-factor for the Lady Eagles is 6-foot-6 junior Hannah Edwards. When healthy, she provides a mismatch against nearly every team Oak Mountain will face.

“I’m looking for her to play major minutes this year because when you have an asset like that, that doesn’t come around every day,” Parmer said.

Abi Brown, Julia Tucker and Riley Sullivan — all softball players — have also impressed in the early days of the season. Abby Gordon, Jayla Hill, Zoe Atkinson, Anna Fleming, Taniyah Smith and A.C. Price will also contribute to the varsity team this season.

Parmer considers herself a defensive-minded coach but believes the Lady Eagles have the depth to run an up-tempo style this season.

“We’re not really short in any position,” she said. “We’ve got at least one or two backups in every spot, which is nice.”

The Lady Eagles also have enlisted the help of Rory’s sister, Morgan William, the former Mississippi State guard whose shot to beat UConn in the 2017 Final Four resonated throughout the country. William won a state championship as a player at Shades Valley just four years ago.

“She brings the aspect of it hasn’t been that long ago since she was right out there,” Parmer said. “She’s got the fresh approach. Between the two of us, we’ll get [a point] across. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed having her.”

In the month of December, Oak Mountain will play the likes of Helena, Vestavia Hills, Pelham and Spain Park. The Lady Eagles conclude the month at Mortimer Jordan’s tournament before beginning area play in January.